Humidifier for musical instruments



Oct. 29, 1968 R. HOLLANDER 3,407,700

' HUMIDIFIER FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Filed Nov. 29, 1966 I N VENTOR.

United States Patent 3,407,700 HUMIDIFIER FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS RalphHollander, 425 W. 57th St., New York, N.Y. 10019 Filed Nov. 29, 1966,Ser. No. 597,711 7 Claims. (Cl. 84453) This invention relates generallyto humidifiers or dampeners for musical instruments, and moreparticularly to a humidifying snake which is insertable into a smallnatural opening in the wooden soundboard of a stringed instrument toimpart moisture thereto.

In the violin family of stringed instruments, strings are extendedacross a wooden resonator cavity or soundboard whose back and front areslightly convex, the front being pierced by two f-shaped resonanceholes. This family of instruments includes the violincello and viola,the smallest being called the violin. In the violin, four strings areprovided which run from the tailpiece at the base over a bridge in thelower center of the soundboard, along a fingerboard and into a peg-box.As the strings are bowed, the resultant tones set up resonant effects inthe soundboard. Consequently, the physical and acoustic condition of thesoundboard affects the brilliance, warmth and quality of the soundsproduced by the player.

The wooden soundboard is constituted by suitably shaped pieces which arebonded together with an adhesive agent of suflicient strength to closethe seams, but capable of yielding when it is necessary to dismantle thepieces for repairs. The exterior surfaces of instruments of the violinfamily are generally varnished, but the interior is uncoated, with thepores of the wood open and receptive to moisture.

Moisture plays an important role in instruments of the violin family, aswell as in fretted instruments, such as guitars, mandolins, and lutes,which include wooden soundboards. Should the wooden body becomedessicated, this may adversely affect the physical condition of theinstrument as well as its tone. Wood, when excessively dry, tends tocheck, that is, to form minute fissures along the ring-lines of thewood, or even to crack. Central heating and dry climate both give riseto excessive atmospheric aridity. Those instruments of the violin familywhich are highly prized, are often very old and the need to conditionthe wood structure by moisture is therefore a matter of crucialimportance.

Moreover, prolonged dryness adversely affects the adhesive used insoundboards, and may cause the seams to give way. But of even greaterconcern to the player, is the influence of aridity on the tonal qualityof a violin and similar instruments, for this tends to impart a brittleor dry tone to the instrument. The reason for this is that the acousticcharacteristics of the wood are a function of its moisture content.

Musicians have recognized the need to maintain their instruments in asomewhat, but not excessively humid atmosphere in order to preventdrying out of the wood. To this end, it has been known to placehumidifiers within the carrying case of the instrument. Such humidifiersusually take the form of a perforated metal container filled with awater-absorbent material. However, such humidifiers have had limitedsuccess, for their action is localized and they do not provide anadequately dispersed humid atmosphere.

Furthermore, the moisture content of container-type humidifiers isrelatively small and quickly exhausted. It must be borne in mind thatsoundboards are completely enclosed, save for small resonance holes,hence when a humidifier exudes moisture at one point within a carryingcase, very little of that moisture ever penetrates the interior of thesound-box.

3,407,700 Patented Oct. 29, 1968 Accordingly, it is the main object ofthis invention to provide a humidifying snake which is capable ofpenetrating the interior of a musical soundboard to impart adequatemoisture thereto over a relatively large area.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a snakein the form of an elongated tubular sheath having a water-absorbent corewith a relatively large capacity, the sheath being perforated along itslength to emit moisture into the atmosphere omnidirectionally as well aslongitudinally, the snake being readily insertable into the interior ofthe sound-box through a resonance hole therein and having dimensionsappropriate to the instrument for which it is intended.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a snake of theabove-identified type, which is completely safe to use, and which may bemanufactured and sold at low cost.

A significant advantage of the invention is that even if the snake isinadvertently left in the instrument when in use, it will not materiallyaffect its playing quality. In fact it is desirable to leave the snakewithin the instrument, at least during practice sessions, for theresultant agitation of the air within the soundboard when playing servesto bring about a better distribution of the moist atmosphere.

For a better understanding of the invention, as well as other objectsand further features thereof, reference is made to the followingdetailed description to be read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a humidifyingsnake in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section taken through the snake;

FIG. 3 shows the snake inserted in a violin; and

FIG. 4 illustrates in perspective another embodiment of the invention.

Referring now to the drawing, a snake in accordance with the inventionis constituted by an outer tubular sheath 10 formed of soft, flexiblematerial such as rubber, or of a suitable elastomeric plastic, withinwhich is a core 11 formed of a water-absorbent material. The sheath isperforated by evaporator apertures 12, the apertures being distributeduniformly both circumferentially and longitudinally.

One end of the sheath may be open or enclosed by a tapered tail piece(not shown), whereas the other end is enclosed by a button-likeheadpiece 13 having a tapered shank 14 insertable within the sheath andheld therein, the head of the button extending laterally beyond thesheath. Core 11 may be constituted by a rod-like sponge or by a clusterof sponge yarn of the type wherein sponge-like material is supported ona filament.

The outside diameter of the snake is such that it may be introducedwithout difiiculty into the resonance hole of the soundboard of theinstrument. Thus, in the case of a violin, as shown in FIG. 3, having asoundboard 15 with an f-shaped resonance hole 16 in the front, the snakeis inserted within this hole. The body of the snake lies within theinterior of the soundboard but the headpiece 13 rests slightly above the1 hole to facilitate subsequent removal of the snake.

In practice, the snake is saturated with water by dipping it, or by theuse of a dropper for injecting water through the apertures. Thediameter, number and distribution of the evaporator apertures determinesthe moisturizing characteristics of the snake, and these parameters maybe selected as desired. The length of the snake is tailored to the sizeof the instrument for which it is intended. Thus, for violins, I havefound a nine inch length suitable, whereas for a viola twelve inches ispreferred, and for a cello and a bass fifteen inches is preferred. Forheavy moisturization, a long snake may be used which is coiled fyingarea.'The diameter of the snake varieswith the size of the instrument.

In lieu of a button as the headpiece, a spider or other means may beused which is adapted to lie against the front of the instrument withoutdamage thereto. In place of a tubular sheath, the outer covering of thesnake may, as shown in FIG. 4, take the form of a helix or coil 17 ofvinyl, latex, or other soft rubber-like material having small spacesbetween the convolutions to provide openings for exhaling moisture froma sponge-like core 18. In this instance, the headpiece 19 is in the formof a multilegged spider.

For guitars, the headpiece may be in the form of a pencil clip having arubberized coating on the tongue. This clip may attach onto the wall ofthe guitar opening. The snake is also useful for percussion instrumentsto prevent the drum skin head from drying out. In this instance, thesnake is inserted in any natural opening in the tympani or drums,thereby maintaining the calf-skin head in a moist condition.

While there have been shown and described preferred embodiments ofhumidifier for musical instruments in accordance with the invention, itwill be appreciated that many changes and modifications may be madetherein without, however, departing from the essential spirit of theinvention as defined in the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

1. A humidifying snake insertable into a natural opening in thesoundboard of a musical instrument, said snake comprising:

(a) an elongated flexible core of water-absorbent ma- 4circumferentially and longitudinally distributed, and (c) an enlargedheadpiece secured to the end of the sheath to permit removal of thesnake, said snake having a diameter permitting its insertion throughsaid natural opening, the dimension of the headpiece being greater thansaid opening.

2. A snake as set forth in claim 1, wherein said sheath is a perforatedtube.

3. A snake as set forth in claim 1, wherein said sheath is a helixhaving spaces between the convolutions thereof.

4. A snake as set forth in claim 1, wherein said core is formed by abundle of longitudinally-extending sponge yarns.

5. A snake as set forth in claim 1, wherein said core is formed by arod-shaped sponge.

6. A snake as set forth in claim 1, wherein said headpiece is a spider.

7. A snake as set forth in claim 1, wherein said instrument is of theviolin family and said snake has a length appropriate to the volume ofthe soundboard of the instrument.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,306,953 6/1919 Fisher.2,418,878 4/1947 Harkins 23953 2,435,096 1/1948 Peterson 239--552,620,227 12/1952 Iwase et a1 84453 X 3,128,664 4/1964 Bango 84453 XFOREIGN PATENTS 1,200,635 6/1959 France.

M. HENSON WOOD, JR., Primary Examiner.

a V. C. WILKS, Assistant Examiner.

1. A HUMIDIFYING SNAKE INSERTABLE INTO A NATURAL OPENING IN THESOUNDBOARD OF A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT, SAID SNAKE COMPRISING: (A) ANELONGATED FLEXIBLE CORE OF WATER-ABSORBENT MATERIAL, (B) A SHEATH OFFLEXIBLE MATERIAL SURROUNDING SAID CORE AND HAVING EVAPORATOR OPENINGSTHEREIN WHICH ARE CIRCUMFERENTIALLY AND LONGITUDINALLY DISTRIBUTED, AND(C) AN ENLARGED HEADPIECE SECURED TO THE END OF THE SHEATH TO PERMITREMOVAL OF THE SNAKE, SAID SNAKE HAVING A DIAMETER PERMITTING ITSINSERTION THROUGH SAID NATURAL OPENING, THE DIMENSION OF THE HEADPIECEBEING GREATER THAN SAID OPENING.